Medical marijuana is one of the biggest healthcare stories out there right now.

We know that cannabis is a godsend for cancer patients, who use it to control their nausea and increase their appetite following chemotherapy.

Researchers are proving every day that cannabis-based drugs are effective against extreme pain, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, and other ailments.

Plus, because of marijuana’s effectiveness in the fight against pain, everyone from doctors to law enforcement leaders are looking to use weed to help end the ongoing – and devastating – opioid crisis.

All that means medical marijuana is also one of the best investment opportunities out there.

Researchers working to discover and refine the medicinal properties of cannabis have been greatly hampered by the Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) classification of the plant as a Schedule 1 drug. That means the federal government deems marijuana as having no accepted medical use, like meth or heroin.

That stance has cut down on the sort of well-funded research that’s needed to usher in the next round of cannabis-based wonder drugs.

But that doesn’t mean no research is happening. After all, GW Pharma and other biotech firms have produced a first round of weed-based drugs.

In fact, there’s a small but growing cottage industry of tiny startups focused on the genetic testing of cannabis to help those biotechs

Some marijuana analytics startups, like Steep Hill, are developing their own gene-sequencing systems – and that’s something very exciting I plan to tell you more about soon.

But most, including Medicinal Genomics, are using state-of-the-art gene-sequencing equipment from the company I want to tell you about today.

This dynamic industry leader is a pioneer in the genetic testing equipment field. And now it’s equipment is crucial for medical marijuana pioneers.

If you got in when I first recommended this stock just a few months ago, you’ve already made nearly 19%.

But thanks to the medical marijuana sector’s interest and several more catalysts I’ll tell you about below, it’s got a lot further to run.

Take a look…

A Dream Come True

With a well-studied cash crop, like corn, researchers can easily manipulate the plant’s genetics to produce just about whatever they desire – better flavor, bigger kernels, disease resistance, etc. After all, the U.S. government and companies like Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON) have spent billions studying corn and sequencing its genes.

But with marijuana, we’re nowhere near there yet.

The dream of medical marijuana researchers is an overarching database that they can use to simply type in what trait they’re looking for and it would spit out either the strain that exists or those that can be combined to provide that characteristic.

The profit motive to get there first is overwhelming for these researchers.

On the recreational side, they want the same thing. Those growing and selling recreational marijuana want to produce products that meet consumers’ preferences for variations in taste, smell, precision dosing, and desired effects.

And companies like Medicinal Genomics are using genetic-sequencing machines from Illumina Inc. (Nasdaq: ILMN) to make that dream a reality.

And as more jurisdictions bring legal weed online, including full legalization in Canada and Massachusetts this summer, the market’s desire for ever-refined and differentiated products will only grow.

That will keep Illumina’s product line in steep demand by those marijuana testing labs’ seeking to build out their knowledge of the plant’s genome.

But that’s just the beginning…

Innovation Juggernaut

In a recent interview, Illumina Chief Financial Officer Sam Samad said the company’s top priority for its cash stockpile of more than $2 billion is innovation.

And that’s right where we want to be in this highly competitive space.

Illumina will soon launch iSeq, a $20,000 benchtop sequencing system with a projected market of 50,000 customers. That’s a potential $1 billion in sales.

The firm is also in the process of migrating customers from its older HiSeq systems to its new NovaSeq systems, which will, in part, reduce RNA sequencing costs and speed sequencing run times.

This ability to rapidly sequence genes is also helping biologists rapidly track new viruses before they can infect entire populations.

It’s helping biotech firms make more advanced drugs. And gene sequencing is now playing a growing role in forensic sciences.

Moreover, Illumina is making a big push into cancer research by creating a universal test system for clinical trials of targeted cancer therapies.

I think you get the picture.

And it’s being run by a top-of-the-line team, including David Cameron, the former U.K. prime minister, who’s taken on a role as consultant and chairman of the firm’s international board.

Dr. Phil Frebbo, a leading prostate cancer researcher and experienced executive who previously worked at Genomic Health (Nasdaq: GHDX), is moving into the role of chief medical officer on March 26.

And It’s Not Stopping Here

Since launching in 1998, Illumina has overcome major hurdles to create a thriving business.

After years of innovation, this genetic sequencing company’s machines can carry out genetic tests for just $1,000 – drastically cheaper than the $1 million it took to sequence the human genome in prior years.

Over the five-year period ending in 2016, Illumina’s sales doubled to $2.4 billion.

3 Responses to Every Medical Marijuana Company Needs This Technology

I read and have taken advice from your many articles over the past couple of years on the wonderful world of Marijuana.’ but, and it is a very big BUT…..what is going on now? Youo and numerous other ‘sages’ keep beating the drum for Marijuana….yet the market or stock prices of the major players keep going down , especially over the past month or so,…….should one get out and maybe buy-in cheaper later, or sell and preserve capital for other opportunities.?~

I believe as a small time investor, that cannabis and cannabis products legalization must explode especially since the HHS, and CDC have a “maximum” dosage of opioid medication without meritt which is causing many veterans and civilians alike with disease generatinf pain and pain from non repairable injury.to literally suffer in non cannabis legal states. A great deal of lifetime, incurable, continuous pain patients do NOT wish to use cannabis products but, we will because un managed pain will cause the patient to stop the pain……one way or the other. MANY wanna be investors do NOT wish to read through endless publications on “which” start yp cannabis product producing companies “might” be well worth buying stock in. We are willing to pay a reasonable amount for a well reserhed company and your advice to invest in……or not. IF the cannabis industry is so well set to make money for people, then WHY don’t you “advisors” use your own reserch and stop advising the potential investor to “trust” your advice on which companies may be a good investment? A great deal of us, small time investors need to be able to fully trust your reserch judgement. We realize that NO possible company you research can guarantee a good returrn but, a good well researched company suggessted by your research we can accept and are willing to pay for at a reasonable charge. I figure that I am a VERY average investorr EXACTLY like Millions of other novice investors. This is all the infromatio I can advise you with as a novice investor. I have read for YEARS but, I have NO education in investing. There are MILLIONS of us. Thank you and we are willing to pay for your research, a reasonable amount and realize that NO investment reccomended is set in stone to produce a profit.

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